“Award Travel is Free” “No, it’s not.” “Does it matter?”
Are your points and miles free? Does it cost you something when you redeem them? Is your travel free if you use your points? Does it make a difference how you've earned them? Spoiler...
Amex Platinum Saks credit: What can you get with $50?
The Amex Platinum card comes with a slew of valuable benefits like elite status, lounge access, and credits for Uber and airline fee incidentals. One of the benefits less often discussed in blog posts...
Chase’s 30% transfer bonus to Aeroplan is awesome, but I’m not buying [On my...
On a recent Frequent Miler on the Air podcast, Nick and I discussed whether it made sense to speculatively transfer points from Chase to Air Canada's Aeroplan. After all, the current 30% (or up...
2 Southwest Companion Passes and a boatload of points with just 3 cards
Update 12/4/22: The increased consumer offers mentioned in this post are scheduled to end on 12/5/22. For current offer information, see our Best Credit Card Offers page.
Yesterday, a member of our Frequent Miler Insiders...
The joy and myth of free travel
If I told you that so far this year I have been in 16 countries over 3 continents and I've flown in flat bed business or first class on 8 different airlines and stayed...
My Global Entry renewal experience (success on arrival)
I recently had to renew my Global Entry card for the second time since originally signing up. My previous renewal was a piece of cake. I did it entirely online and an interview wasn't...
Southwest Companion Pass Open Season
Does two years of free companion travel and points to cover more than $1500 in airfare sound good to you? Southwest Companion Pass Open Season has officially begun and this week we discuss strategies...
Should I go for Marriott Titanium Elite Status?
I have a bit of a conundrum here. I had previously decided not to re-qualify for 75-night Marriott Titanium elite status, but circumstances have me questioning that decision. Surprisingly, this year to-date, I've earned...
Anatomy of an Aeroplan award
I've really come to love Aeroplan more and more this year. Obviously it was a big tool on my path to victory in the 3 Cards 3 Continents challenge, but I also find it...
If you could be gifted status, which would you choose? (on Nick’s mind)
A question came up while I was hanging out with a group of points and miles experts recently that I found more difficult to answer than I first expected. Julia from Geobreeze Travel asked...
Best options for buying Visa and MasterCard gift cards
Visa and Mastercard gift cards can be extremely useful tools to maximize rewards on credit card spend. These cards are sold both in fixed denominations and in variable-load forms where you can put anywhere...
How to use your Chase Ultimate Rewards fortune
Given that at the time of this writing Chase is offering an 80,000 point bonus for their Sapphire Reserve card and all-time-best 90,000 offers for their Ink Business Cash and Ink Business Unlimited cards,...
Avianca LifeMiles sweet spots for award flights
Avianca LifeMiles is one of our favorite airline programs because of unique sweet spots, the ability to manipulate awards to pay fewer miles than the rates listed on the published award chart and the...
Points for family travel
Ever wonder how to leverage points, miles, and credit card benefits to enhance your family travel? This week on Frequent Miler on the Air, Greg and Nick discuss strategies and share tips to help...
